Flying Without Wings
by Spanish Ninja Sneasel
Summary: When I wrote "Flying", it was too short. So I decided to write a longer version. It's more detailed and it has a play on the last line of "Flying."


_You know the drill. I don't own Pokemon or anything like that. The lyrics at the end are from "Flying Without Wings" by Westlife. The song belongs to Pokemon, Pokemon doesn't belong to me. Got it? Good._  
  
For as long as I could remember I was with him. He was my trainer, my friend, and my partner. He cared about me as much as I did him, and he didn't need words to tell me that. We were bonded; I always knew what he wanted me to do, although I'd wait for his mark to do so. He could always tell when I was ready to attack and when I was leading the opponent on. We worked as a team; I didn't simply execute his commands.  
  
I can remember when I was a Growlithe. I don't know when he caught me; I can't remember that far back. But I know that I was a runt. There was some problem because as I got older, I didn't grow. He was worried about me... I was too weak. We both looked forward to the day when I would evolve; then I would be an Arcanine and I'd stand over six feet tall. At that point I barely stood a foot.  
  
But I would battle nonetheless. We would battle endlessly, trying to make me grow, but I never did. I was envious. His other Pokemon would battle for the challenge, the thrill. I felt... Inferior. I could only battle wild Pokemon because they were weaker than trained ones. I'd see other trainers with their Growlithes, training and battling, side by side. I wanted to be like that, I wanted him to trust me. But most of all, I wanted to be worthy of his trust. I wanted to be strong and match up to his other Pokemon... I wanted to be all I could be.  
  
Then he found a Fire Stone. A Fire Stone would evolve me into an Arcanine; a large, powerful, and majestic Pokemon. I admired the Arcanine, I wanted so much to be one. But a Fire stone would also evolve the Eevee into a Flareon. He loved the Eevee. I knew he would use it on her, then he would have a _good_ Fire Pokemon in his team. I didn't expect anything; I just sat in my Pokeball and waited for my next battle against a Spearow or Venonat. But... He let me out. He took me out of my Pokeball and I stood before him, seeing the Fire Stone in his hand. He knelt down to me.  
  
"Hey, buddy," he scratched behind my left ear as a greeting. "Growlithe, I know you want to be stronger. I know you want it as much as I do. But Grandpa said you can't be any more than you are now. He said you're a runt and I can't train you to be more."  
  
I looked down at the grass below my feet. He always spoke fondly of his Grandfather and he was usually right, too. I saw no reason why he wouldn't be right about that, too.  
  
"But I don't believe him," he said quietly and stood up, looking out into the sky. "If I want to be a Pokemon Master, I can't give up on any one Pokemon. You're the only Growlithe I've ever even found in the wild and you mean a lot to me. I believe in you."  
  
All that I could manage to let out was a quiet mumble. I thought for sure that he would give up on me, decide I'd never learn any more than I knew at the time. But then again... If he was going to give up on me, he would have already done it, wouldn't he? He came back down in front of me and showed me the Fire Stone.  
  
"This can make you stronger. But I need to know... Do you want to do this?"  
  
I wanted it more than anything. I thought that maybe if I evolved, I could persevere through any battle; I could fight against trainers. I could fight against any trainer, and any wild Pokemon. I could be my best. To answer his question, I threw my front paws onto his knees and barked once, wagging my tail.  
  
He smiled at me and nudged me off, telling me to sit still. As he brought the Stone to my shoulder, I realized that those would be the last few seconds that I would be a Growlithe. I was finally going to be great. I would finally be able to participate in real battles... And he would trust me. He would be able to rely on me to win.  
  
A strange feeling came over my body. I could feel my muscles retracting and my mind was racing. I was going to be an Arcanine. I had seen many before. They stood taller than humans. I would be looking down at him once I could see again. A powerful feeling overtook my muscles and bones... The glow was dimming. My vision slowly came back... I could see green. And purple... Purple. He wore purple. More details formed... It was him. I expected to stand over his head. Didn't it work?  
  
Everything was clear again. I was bigger than before, but I was still smaller than I was supposed to be. I reached his chest. That was it. I did the one thing that could possibly make me stronger, and I was still a runt. I closed me eyes and turned my head away, ashamed to face him.  
  
I almost walked away then and there, sure that he wouldn't want me anymore anyway. But he stopped me. He... Hugged me. He dug his fingers into my newly grown tuff of fur around my neck and laughed.  
  
"Look at you. You're an Arcanine now. I have an Arcanine..."  
  
He was happy. He didn't seem to care that I was small. Maybe it didn't matter. Maybe I could be strong with my size. After all... He said he believed in me.  
  
__ __ __  
  
We trained harder. We battled many wild Pokemon and I proved to be stronger. He gradually introduced me into trainer battles, where I further developed my skills. I could finally battle without any expectations; I could battle because I wanted to. And the more and more I'd battle other trainers, the more I'd win.  
  
Then there was one battle... He was using the Eevee. She was battling a Magneton. It used a Thunder attack, the strongest Electric attack. Luckily she evaded it, but it tried another. She went down. He would have to bring out another Pokemon. He would probably use Cubone, since it had an advantage over the Electric Pokemon. But I felt my Pokeball being picked up. I heard those four words.  
  
"I choose you, Arcanine!"  
  
I was surprised, but I prepared myself for battle instead of questioning. I stood head to head with my opponent, ready to avenge my fallen teammate.  
  
"Arcanine, Fire Spin!"  
  
I sent a cylinder of fire around Magneton, trapping it so I'd have the advantage with my next attack. I knew this technique; next he'd choose either Take Down, a powerful charging move, or Fire Blast, my strongest attack.  
  
"Now use Take Down!"  
  
I brought all of my strength to the front of my body and rammed into it, sending it to the ground. I had won. I defeated a Pokemon that Eevee couldn't. More to the point, he _chose_ me against a Pokemon that Eevee couldn't beat. He finally trusted me.  
  
I found myself in many more battles after that. I became much stronger, and it wasn't long before he started bragging about me. I was proud of myself and of him. We worked together to make me what I was, and I was a powerful Pokemon. I was strong, graceful, and courageous... Just like my trainer.  
  
__ __ __  
  
There is a battle that I remember distinctly to this day. He was facing a gym leader, battling for an Earth badge. I had defeated a Kingler and Nidoking took down a Golem. They were both strong Pokemon, but we were stronger. Then he brought out another one. A strange Pokemon that I had never seen before. It was in armor... What kind of Pokemon needs to be put in armor? I could see that he was scared... At least confused. I bore my teeth at the Pokemon, and before I could even attack I was being lifted by some sort of psychic force. Somehow, it threw me into the wall. I didn't seem to have a chance against something that could do that, predicting when I was going to attack.  
  
The man gave him permission to use more than one Pokemon, so instead of bringing out a third, Nidoking and I fought together. We went for a straight-on attack, but that psychic force overtook us both. Before it could throw us back, he returned us to our Pokeballs. He didn't want us to get hurt, but that left him defenseless, and it didn't seem past that thing to attack a human. It was angry that he called us back... I tried as hard as I could to let myself back out and defend him, but I was feeling weak and couldn't manage it. I heard him scream. It pierced through my heart; I would have done anything to get back out there. After the scream was silence. It was quiet for far too long. I heard the man's voice indistinctly, followed by footsteps. He left without even helping my trainer. I would have done anything...  
  
The boy with the Pikachu saved him. I'm eternally grateful to him for that. I listened to the events thereafter. My trainer helped him win his own Earth badge, without even competing for it himself. He was grateful, too. The Pikachu boy won. I knew he could with my trainer's help.  
  
__ __ __  
  
And now I lie in my Pokeball while he sleeps. I should be sleeping now, too; I can sleep lightly and wake if he's in any sort of danger. But now I reflect on these thoughts. I love him more than the world. He's taught me to be everything I can. He believed in me when even I didn't. We were invincible together, whether battles could prove that or not. There's nothing I wouldn't do if it meant he'd be safe. Sleep now, trainer. I will defend you to the death.  
  
_"And you're the place my life beings  
And you'll be where it ends  
I'm flying without wings  
And that's the joy you bring  
I'm flying without wings."  
Westlife_


End file.
